The three pricing models
Each is legitimate. Each creates different incentives.
| Contingency agency | Fixed project fee | Dedicated seat | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee basis | 15–25% of first-year salary | Scoped on the research | Monthly day-rate retainer |
| When paid | Only on placement | Instalments against the brief | Monthly |
| Rises if you offer more | Yes | No | No |
| Paid if nobody is hired | No | Yes | Yes |
| Market coverage | Existing network | Researched | Researched |
| Longlist shown before outreach | No | Yes | Yes |
| Research handed over | No | Yes | Yes |
| Can advise against hiring | No commercial reason to | Yes | Yes |
| Best for | Deep markets with active candidates | One hard role at a time | Continuous demand across several roles |
The row worth sitting with is the eighth. A provider whose fee depends on a placement has no commercial reason to tell you the band is below market, the role combines two jobs, or the location has no catchment — and those three findings are frequently the most valuable output of a campaign.
Fee bands by currency
Each market page also states its own.
| Engagement | USD | GBP | EUR | AUD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single-role sourcing project | $3,000–$7,500 | £2,400–£6,000 | €3,000–€7,500 | A$5,500–A$12,500 |
| Multi-role or campaign sourcing | $9,000–$28,000 | £7,000–£22,000 | €9,000–€28,000 | A$16,000–A$45,000 |
| Dedicated sourcing seat (per month) | $5,200–$9,500 | £4,200–£7,500 | €5,200–€9,500 | A$8,500–A$15,000 |
Fees are quoted in the currency of the market being sourced, except in the Gulf where US dollars are the convention and invoicing in AED is available. Cross-border campaigns are quoted in one currency agreed at briefing.
What drives the fee
Breadth of the target population
A tightly defined capability in one city costs a fraction of the same role searched across a function and a continent.
Number of markets
Each additional market adds research time and, in several of ours, a second working language and a different outreach-law position.
Working languages
A bilingual Belgian campaign is genuinely two pieces of research. So is a German-plus-English technical search.
Confidentiality
A campaign that cannot name the client is slower, because every approach has to carry conviction without the brand behind it.
Whether contact discovery is included
Verified direct contact details are a separate activity with their own cost. See number gathering.
One role or a campaign
Several linked roles against one population cost far less per role than separate projects, because the research is shared.
Against the agency model
Worked at three salary levels, using a 20 per cent contingency rate.
| First-year salary | Agency at 20% | Our project fee | Difference | You also keep |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $90,000 | $18,000 | $3,000–$5,000 | Roughly $13,000–$15,000 | The longlist and decline record |
| $150,000 | $30,000 | $4,500–$7,500 | Roughly $22,500–$25,500 | The longlist and decline record |
| $220,000 | $44,000 | $5,500–$7,500 | Roughly $36,500–$38,500 | The longlist and decline record |
The pattern is the point: under a percentage model the fee rises with the salary while the work does not. Sourcing a $220,000 role is harder than sourcing a $90,000 one, but it is not two and a half times harder.
And the second column of value compounds. A longlist handed over is reusable for the next role in the same population, for a pay review, and for the people who said no this year and will say yes next. The fee comparison calculator runs it on your own numbers.
The sourcing seat
A sourcing seat is a named researcher retained monthly to work only your roles, typically covering three to six live requisitions at a time depending on difficulty. It is the model most in-house teams end up on once they have bought two or three single-role projects.
At that volume the economics change sharply. A seat at $7,000 a month covering four roles is $1,750 per role, against $30,000 per hire on a 20 per cent contingency model — and the researcher accumulates knowledge of your market, your brief style and your brand rather than starting cold each time.
It is also the easiest thing to stop. There is no minimum term, no notice beyond the current month, and no clawback.
Three hidden costs worth checking
Ask these of any sourcing provider, including us.
- Is the dataset handed over, or only shown? Access and ownership are different, and the difference appears when the engagement ends. Ours is handed over permanently.
- Is contact discovery included? Verified direct contact details are a separate activity with a separate cost. Our scope document states whether it is in.
- Are tooling or advertising costs passed through? Some providers bill licence and job-board spend on top. We do not.
Working to a fixed budget
- Narrow the geography before the depth. One market researched properly beats three skimmed.
- Test the band first. A few days of compensation intelligence prevents a month of wasted outreach.
- Group the roles. Three roles against one population cost far less than three separate projects.
- Buy a seat rather than projects once you are commissioning more than one role a quarter.
- Do not buy a thinner campaign. A half-researched longlist produces false confidence that the market has been covered.
Sourcing cost FAQs
How much does talent sourcing cost?
A single-role sourcing project typically costs $3,000 to $7,500, roughly £2,400 to £6,000 or €3,000 to €7,500. A multi-role or campaign engagement typically costs $9,000 to $28,000. A dedicated sourcing seat typically costs $5,200 to $9,500 a month.
All are fixed project fees or agreed day rates set before work begins. There is no percentage of salary and no placement fee.
How does that compare with a recruitment agency?
A contingency agency typically charges 15 to 25 per cent of first-year salary on placement. On a $150,000 role at 20 per cent that is $30,000 for one hire, and the research stays with the agency.
Research-led sourcing on a project fee costs a fraction of that for the same role, works several roles at once under a monthly seat, and hands you the longlist, the approach record and the decline reasons.
Is a cheaper fee not just a worse service?
It is a differently structured one. You are not paying for the agency’s risk of doing work and not being paid, which is what a contingency percentage prices in.
You are also not getting the agency’s existing candidate network, which for a genuinely available market can be faster. Where that is your situation we will say so — contingency is the right purchase for roles with deep, active supply.
What drives the fee?
Six things: how broad the target population is, how many markets, how many working languages, whether the role is confidential, whether contact discovery is included, and whether it is one role or a campaign.
What never changes it: the salary, your company’s size, and whether you hire.
Do you charge if nobody is hired?
The fee is for the work, so yes — and that is the point. It is what allows us to report in week two that the band is below market or the specification is two jobs.
In practice we try to surface that at briefing. If the role as specified cannot be filled, we would rather say so before you commission anything.
What is a sourcing seat?
A named researcher retained monthly to work only your roles, typically covering three to six live requisitions at a time depending on difficulty.
It suits continuous demand. At that volume the cost per role falls well below a per-project fee and far below any percentage model.
Are there hidden costs?
There should not be, and three are worth checking with any provider. Whether the dataset is handed over or only shown. Whether contact discovery is included or billed separately. And whether outreach tooling or job advertising is charged on top.
On our engagements the dataset is yours, the scope document states whether contact discovery is in, and there are no tooling pass-throughs.
Can you work to a fixed budget?
Yes. Tell us the number and we will say what can be researched and approached properly within it, usually by narrowing the population or the geography rather than by cutting verification.
What we will not do is run a thinner campaign and present it as complete.
Do fees differ by market?
Yes, and each market page states its own bands. Markets that are phone-led and non-English — Germany, Austria, Belgium — cost more per role because reaching the right people takes researcher time rather than tool licences.
When do we know the fee?
Within one working day of the briefing call. The written brief states the target population, the deliverables, both timelines and the fixed fee. Nothing is billed by the hour.